Back in 1853, Elizabeth Schermerhorn Jones built a 24-room gothic mansion called Wyndclyffe in Rhinebeck, New York. It was designed by architect George Veitch and sat on over 80 acres of land. Her family must have been a tad bit jealous, because several members built their own mansions in the Hudson Valley as a result — each of which was more and more grand. Thus, the saying "Keeping up with the Joneses" was born.

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It's been through several different homeowners over the years, including the aunt of American novelist Edith Wharton. After the Great Depression struck, several owners could no longer afford to maintain the mansion and it was abandoned in the 1950s. Sadly, it's been crumbling brick by brick in recent decades and most of the land surrounding the mansion has been sold off, with the exception of only 2.5 acres.

A photo posted by Nathan Swan (@nathanswan) on May 23, 2016 at 1:06pm PDT

History buffs will be happy to know that a new owner snatched up the property just yesterday for $120,000 during an auction in Queens. Even though it went to an anonymous buyer, our fingers are crossed they'll choose to fix up the mansion instead of tearing it down. If they do choose to reinvest, we're sure the 7,690-square-foot home will be a sight to behold — and something no one will be able to compete with.